In The News (7)

an area as large as 6,000 square kilometers (roughly 2,300 square miles) around Kathmandu lifted up by at least 1 meter (about 3 feet). ..... This map tells scientists which parts of the fault slipped and which parts did not. Those that didn't slip are primed for a future earthquake ...... Sentinel-1A will continue to take images of the same patch of land every 12 days ..... NASA is deploying technology that can help locate people trapped beneath the rubble in Nepal. This technology, known as FINDER (for Finding Individuals for Disaster and Emergency Response), sends a low-powered microwave signal to search for small movements made by a person's breathing or heartbeat. It can locate people hidden underneath 20 feet (6 m) of solid concrete and from a distance of 100 feet (30.5 m) in open space.

The official death toll has climbed above 7,000, and more than 14,000 people have been injured. Because rescuers are still trying to reach remote villages, those numbers are sure to rise. The challenge now is to help survivors. In six weeks, crops must be planted; 70 percent of Nepal’s citizens depend on agriculture for their livelihood. In eight weeks, the monsoon will arrive, bringing lashing rains and hail to areas where many are living out in the open. ..... There is a real danger that a disaster of this magnitude could plunge Nepal into political chaos. The country is still recovering from a 10-year civil war that ended in 2006. When the earthquake struck, the government was locked in a bitter dispute with the Maoist opposition over how a new federal structure should reflect the country’s ethnic and linguistic divisions.

In 2010 Nama was doing a PhD in crowdsourcing, open data and social and mobile media at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign when the Haiti earthquake struck. ..... "Navigation in Kathmandu [was already] a nightmare; we don't have a very good address system. If you get an invitation to dinner, to reach that house you have to make six or seven calls to get directions. ..... And so at the end of 2013, with a team of six volunteers, he started mapping Nepal using open data software called OpenStreetMap. ..... He now has about 36 people in Kathmandu, along with more than 4,300 remote contributors from all over the world, helping relief agencies get a clearer picture on the ground. ....... "What KLL has done is empowered people to have an understanding of the community around them and helped humanitarian actors to spend our money more wisely and help more people." ...... Nama says the Nepal army checks the individual reports every two hours and passes on relevant information to their relief operations divisions.

"I thought I had vertigo for about 10 seconds, and I didn't want to say anything to anybody," said Carter, who heads an Indianapolis building materials supplier. "But then I realized, after hearing the rock falling, that we were in a major earthquake. It was an eye-opener." ..... Indianapolis attorney John Mead suspected that the loss of balance he felt was the result of sickness caused by the altitude. ..... As soon as the earth starts moving, you're losing your sense of balance, and you think, 'Oh great, I'm sick,' " Mead said. "But then you realize that everybody around you is also moving, and they're gripping your shoulder with this really tight hand. Then you realize, 'OK, it's not me. It's an earthquake.' " ...... Before the earthquake, the trekkers had discussed whether to pick up the pace to get to base camp a day early. They missed being buried alongside other trekkers by about 24 hours. ....... Aftershocks became too numerous to count. The Hoosier trekkers were more than 7,700 miles from home. ..... "Everything is shaking, one of the retaining walls comes down, and you're just tense the whole time because you don't know how badly damaged the building is, you don't know when the next quake of aftershock is going to come," Mead said. "... It's very hard to just shut down."..... Even sleep had taken on a new meaning. The word was now being used to describe the act of sitting in a relaxed position while still wearing hiking gear. As they rested, trekkers kept an arm or leg placed in a position to provide leverage so they could vault upright and run toward the nearest exit at a moment's notice. ...... "Tourism, trekking and climbing is pretty much Nepal's only industry," Mead said. "It's the only thing that brings in outside money other than foreign aid, so major catastrophes like this can really shake the foundation of the country — all the way down to the individual lodge owners, to the Sherpas who guide you on treks to the guys who own the cows that carry your bags."

temporary homes were provided to thousands within 24 hours of the quake ..... eight million people have been affected by the earthquake while 2.8 million people have been displaced by it. ...... A UK Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) public appeal for donations has so far raised more than £33m, while the UK government has committed £17.5m in humanitarian aid to date. ..... had given "practical assistance" to more than 350 British nationals in Nepal and had arranged flights out of Nepal for around 150.

warehouse logistics boss Edmund Chew received old bras, expired medicine, puzzle sets and even expired bird's nest ..... he suggested blankets, sweaters, medication, sleeping bags, tents, torchlights and food like rice or canned items with at least six months until expiry. ...... The United Nations has said at least two million people need tents, water, food and medicine over the next three months. ..... Since the donation drive started right after the quake, about 90 tonnes of items have been collected. So far, about a third have been transported to Nepal. Around 300 volunteers are involved in sorting out the donated items at the Astrans warehouse in Tuas...... Of everything sent in, only 5 per cent are items of no use to Nepal. Surplus usable stock will be sent to The Salvation Army or old folks' homes.